Sokka
Sokka is a member of the Southern Water Tribe, once a large community, but greatly reduced due to the war with the Fire Nation. As the son of Chief Hakoda, apprentice of Master Piandao, and best friend of Avatar Aang, Sokka has a big and important future ahead of him... at least back home. The past several months he spent as part of Team Avatar alongside his sister Katara and friends Toph, Zuko, and Suki. Although he lacks the power to bend the elements, he makes up for it with his keen mind, his weapon mastery, and his never-ending sense of humor. =History= Sokka - Avatar Wiki =Personality= On the surface level, Sokka appears to most as a goofy kid prone to self-inflicted pain and constant sarcasm. In fact, he once described himself as just the "Meat and Sarcasm Guy" when he found himself trapped between a rock and a hard place (literally) and nearly gave up those two traits he considered to be the most important aspects of himself. But in spite of first appearances, there's a bit more to Sokka than just a carnivorous kid who likes to crack jokes. Before he began his quest with the Avatar, Sokka had spent several years as the oldest male in his tribe that consisted mostly of older women and children. He developed an overinflated ego due to his status as the protector of the tribe, was skeptical of bending, and was something of a chauvinist in his opinion to women, since traditionally men did all the hunting and fighting in the two Water Tribes. Because he had lost his mother at a young age and even had difficulties remembering what she even looked like, he tended to rely on his younger sister, Katara, to do a lot of the motherly things he missed out on. Unfortunately he tended to consider those sort of things to be things like cooking, doing his laundry, and other menial tasks. Because the Fire Nation had robbed him of his mother (and in a way, his father too), Sokka has long held an animosity towards the Fire Nation. In spite of his stubborn nature, it is notable that of all of the Avatar's companions, Sokka was the quickest to learn from his mistakes and apply those lessons to his life. He quickly gained a respect for the bending arts thanks to Aang, a respect for women after being bested by Suki, and acceptance from people of the Fire Nation after becoming allies with Zuko. Because he was the oldest of the initial group, at first Sokka fashioned himself the leader of the group. Despite his tendency to sometimes be as childish and immature as Aang, Sokka was always the most focused on the mission and making sure that not only did they stay on track, but they did it without being followed and without running out of coin or food. He usually fancies himself as a pessimist (though not as much as before) and likes to see things in terms of the big picture, often pointing out that they can't always stop and help everyone they come across. In spite of his usually focused attitude, he is known for making rash decisions at times or worse, overcomplicating things that would otherwise be simple. These tend to lead him into making embarassing mistakes that usually hurt him more than it does his pride (though it varies). Perhaps his greatest strength is that in spite of his many failures, his stubborness and persistence keeps him ever giving up. Unlike his companions, Sokka wasn't able to use bending powers. Although he usually tried not to show it, he sometimes felt second rate to his companions, who were all master Benders. He usually made up with this with his assortment of weapons, that he gradually improved his skills with over time. Perhaps a larger contribution was his resourcefulness and technical expertise, which he used to come up with several tricks or devices that would help the team on various ocassions. When Sokka was finally able to find a swordmaster of his own, the rest of the team soon found theirselves bored, unmotivates, and not knowing what to do without Sokka around to liven things up and keep them on task. Although he still has some insecurities about his failures and is well aware of his own limitations as a leader and warrior, he tends to keep an upbeat attitude for the sake of his friends. He's quick to forgive and very protective of the people he cares about. Strengths Although Sokka lacks the ability to bend the elements like his friends, he is still a skilled fighter in how own right and has demonstrated the ability to hold his own against many other benders and fighters. He's proficient with various Water Tribe weapons, but his two favored weapons are his boomerang and the space sword he forged from a meteorite. His journeys have advanced him from being a rather poor fighter to a talented warrior who uses resourcefulness and quick thinking to bridge the gap between his own skill level and that of his opponent's. Even his swordmaster, Piandao, states that it was Sokka's resourcefulness and creativity that impressed him, not his skills. Despite the large gap in skills, Sokka was able to hold his own in the battle against Piandao for a time by using his surroundings to his advantage. In addition to his sword, Sokka has an impressive talent using his boomerang to hit distant targets. He has also demonstrated a talent with a few other Water Tribe weapons, like clubs and machetes. Once he learns how to anticipate his enemy's moves, he quickly learns how to avoid their blows, particularly when faced with a rematch with Ty Lee, where he was able to avoid her chi-blocking attacks. Sokka's greatest asset is his mind. Despite his goofy nature, Sokka possesses a very intelligent and scientific mind. While he would consider Piandao his sword master, he would just as likely consider the Mechanist and his own father to be his role model when it comes to the sciences. He has learned how to create explosives, stink bombs, and even how to power hot-air balloons using the resources available to him. At other times, he's developed ways to simulate forms of bending in order to fool others. Although his technical expertise sometimes fall short of his creativity (he created the idea for the world's first submarines, but the technicalities he left to the Mechanist), he has proven to be adept at quickly learning how technology functions, demonstrated by his ability to quickly learn how to pilot the complicated controls of Fire Nation airships. These quick wits help him out in battle as well and he often prefers to use the element of surprise to overwhelm his opponent. Weaknesses In a straight battle, Sokka is only an average or above average fighter at best. Although he can usually avoid these kind of situations, he wouldn't be difficult to defeat in a situation where he didn't have the backup of his friends or the resources necessary to gain an edge on his opponent. In spite of his intelligence, Sokka has a tendency to overthink things to the point that only he truly understands the details of his plan. At other times, his big picture mentality can keep him from noticing the small details that tend to backfire him. In most situations, his own worst enemy is himself. Whether it's coming up with a faulty plan or simply saying the wrong thing to one of his friends, he is a constant victim of a great deal of physical pain. Because of his tendency to be goofy and act outright stupid at times, sometimes he has difficulty getting people to take him as seriously as he would like them to. Although he is capable of being mature and trying to help friends with their problems, he doesn't always have the most success at doing so and usually leaves that sort of stuff to his sister. =Possessions= Weapons *Boomerang - A gift from his father, Hakoda, that he's had since he was at least eight years old. Of all his weapons, Sokka is undeniably a master with the boomerang and his aim with it is deadly accurate. It's definitely his most prized possession, though he lost it during Sozin's Comet, he reclaimed it in Luceti. *Space Sword - A sword Sokka helped to forge himself, with the help of Master Piandao. It is made of meteor rock and is extraordinarily strong and sharp, capable of cutting through metal. Due to its alien origins, the metal has an unusual black color to it. Like the boomerang, he lost it during Sozin's Comet. *Bone Club - One of Sokka's weapons he picked up during his brief reunion with the Southern Water Tribe's forces. It appeared in the smithy a few weeks after his arrival and it rarely leaves the house. *Machete - One of Sokka's older weapons that he exchanged in favor of his Space Sword. He keeps it at the smithy and generally uses it for mundane activities requiring a sharp object, like picking his teeth or shaving. Other *Calligraphy Set - A gift from Toph on Christmas. He used it to create his Valentine's messages. He keeps it in good order, tucked safely away in his room. *Shell Bead - A gift from Katara on his birthday. It's fashioned to be identical to their father's. Since he hasn't grown his hair long enough to start wearing it, he has it attached to a tassel on the sheath for his sword.